The Age of Decadence

The Age of Decadence is a turn-based, hardcore role-playing game set in a low magic, post-apocalyptic fantasy world. The game features a detailed skill-based character system, multiple skill-based ways to handle quests, choices & consequences, and extensive dialogue trees.

Ok, so right now I'm hugely frustrated by this game.
Each and everyone of the standard builds feel largely incapable of everything, including what they're meant for. My mercenary, for instance, is 100% incapable of surviving the last fight of the GI que...

I killed these 2 and their 2 bodyguards, for Nasir the guy that wanted the yellow sapphire. at the rich house near the Palace in Madaaron.
I killed these 4 guys and didnt receive any combat skill points.
Yet after killing Bums, I get rewarded combat ski...

This Guide covers the optional unmarked Side Quests scattered throughout Teron, along with a list of skills needed to unlock them or give you a tactical edge in a fight.
This Guide also provides a map that notes all the points of interest in Teron.
N...

This is a hard game to review. On one hand, Age of Decadence (AoD) has a lot of what I would consider hallmarks of a great RPG: unique and interesting setting, reactivity influenced by player choice, in-depth character and combat systems, many varied and challenging quests, and a strong cast of characters. On the other hand, AoD is a game made on an obvious budget with all the shortcomings of an RPG designed by an idealist.

AoD is what I consider a work of love and pride, but that is not necessarily a great thing. It is necessarily a thing that will either make you love or hate this game. Vince, the guy behind AoD, wanted to make something that was his own, something that wasn't dumbed down for the rabid consumer masses, so he did just that by making his own video game company. Are you catching on yet? There are no quest pointers, no ancient evil to slay—I admit though, that last one is factually false—and there is definitely no mercy. AoD is punishing, intentionally so, and it has one of the steepest learning curves I've seen in an RPG.

If you're willing to look past that, or you're a glutton for punishment, you may find the experience very rewarding. AoD's combat system, while intimidating at the onset, had me hooked for hours on end. Every critical hit, every successful encounter where I left a dozen men dead, I relished it. Every failure, every reloaded save game, motivated me to succeed. And I did succeed. Once I got past the learning curve, once I was in control of everything around me, I climbed the nearest ziggurat and shouted my name to the masses below. I conquered destiny. I felt like a god.

Actually, nothing like that happened, but I did have a lot of fun. I think AoD's strongest point is that once you play through the game once or twice you can set your own goals, and achieving those goals can be very satisfying. And to be fair, the game does have a lot of opportunity for roleplay. A sultry merchant girl who also dabbles in the deadly arts of alchemy? How about a bald mercenary berserker who always keeps his word? Maybe an antisocial assassin who just likes to kill? All of that and more is possible.

It is also worth mentioning that there is no mandatory combat at all in the game—you can avoid fighting if you wish to, and many quests have alternative means of resolution. It's something you don't really see in a genre dominated by hack'n'slash. Don't take this to mean that combat is rare or doesn't happen very often. On the contrary, if you play a soldier, expect to fight. If you start a barfight, expect to fight. If you like fighting, expect to fight.

AoD is not a perfect game. The graphics are very basic, I'd place them somewhere around 2005 or earlier, and there isn't much in the way of character customization. The latter is a staple of character creation these days, and it may come as a surprise to see only six or seven hairstyles that you can choose from. On the plus side, the portrait artist for the game is phenomenal.

The reactivity, while very nice for the majority of the game, is not as well-featured in the third chapter. Many choices are given, but most of them are consequences of the events that will take place regardless of your actions; moreover, certain characters you expect to run into again are simply discarded, never to be seen again. Unfortunate, not unexpected.

The story and dialog writing are average to good, never particularly outstanding. There are two examples of some decent writing that stood out to me, but this is all a minor point. A sweeping, fantastic plot isn't what AoD is about, and much of the game deals with conflicting ideologies in a time of strife. In that regard, the characters are all varied and interesting. I do have a related complaint, however: After a couple of playthroughs the main character begins to sound the same. Most of the lines and reactions are the same regardless of who you play or how you play them, and the primary difference is who you serve and what quests you undertake.

It is easier to succeed in AoD if you do the sidequests, gain the Skill Points, and invest them at the right time to earn even more Skill Points. It is like an avalanche, you build momentum until you are unstoppable. The problem lies in that if you skip the bonus content, you are quite likely to fail important skill checks later, locking you out of other content. If you build for a combat-oriented or a conversation-oriented character, the game is also fairly easy. If you create some hybrid of the two, you are often setting yourself up for failure. Newcomers to the game do not understand this and for good reason. It's not really something you know before you actually fail a couple of times. Vince, the aforementioned developer, is active on the forums. He's actually pretty cool about answering questions. So if you're stuck, help is just a post away.

I still can't believe I sunk so many hours in to AoD, but it was over a period of weeks. If you're like me and can easily get absorbed into something for a long period of time, maybe you should stay away and spend your time more productively. Otherwise, welcome to the Greco-Roman RPG of your dreams. May your AP never diminish and RNG forever walk by your side. There is a free demo available on the store page that contains about a third of the game, so try that first. Recommended.

This game is very interesting adn allows for many many playthroughs. If you want to not fight, then you can arrange to talk your way out of most anything. Or, you can lead the assault on Ganezzar yourself, at the vanguard of the Imperial Guards. And that battle is AMAZING, if you can manage to not get gutted.Low magic, high mortality. Interesting mysteries.

This guide will teach you how to create the most potent SP-farming machine and accumulate a high Body Count. It is centered around the Assassin background and includes stealing, looting, killing, and collecting just about everything. Not for the faint of h...

I played a few hours (4 hours) thinking the game saves my progress but after I went in a fight I can't win no matter what because it's just totally impossible. And of course I decided to load my autosave and guess what - it's ONLY freaking autosave and it...

I used the Whetstone on a steel dagger and I get added damage x 30 strikes (expectedly).
I used the Whetsone on a batch of 58 steel karda throwing weapons and it splits the stack into 20 kardas with bonus whetstone damage and 38 regular kardas.
Shouldn'...